It amazes me how every day one can receive the messages needed, if one is open to them.Last night I was reading a chapter entitled, "Making the conscious decision to love your life," in Lorna Byrne's "Love from Heaven: Practicing Compassion for Yourself and Others." In this section of the book, Lorna, who has had a life long ability to see and communicate with angels and beings that have passed on, states that to love is our most important mission in life. Love is indeed our essence. And so, to experience a love and zest for life, is of paramount importance.In fact, Lorna believes, that one cannot truly love another person, if one has not loved oneself first. This is a pre-requisite for all love. Our tendency in life is to put ourselves last, and also to put ourselves down, constantly criticizing all of our perceived flaws.To love life and ourselves fully, we must be in the moment, and enjoy every little thing we experience: even the work that we do - our morning walk and daily rituals - the bird that perches outside our window in the dawn to sing her sweet song, luring us from sleep, the arrival of twilight, yielding to the summer sky - our relationships and connections, and every piece that makes up the fabric of our lives. After all, life is a simply a collection of ordinary events strung together like a set of mala beads. Life is, indeed, a gift!How much of an amazing person are you? Consider the very miracle of your existence...In "Paradise in Plain Sight: Lessons from a Zen Garden," Karen Maezen Miller notes, that in her own Zen garden, carefully cultivated over a number of years, one oak tree drops over two thousand acorns! That sounds like a lot - but it really isn't:"One acorn in ten thousand becomes a tree. On the one hand, what a waste. On the other, it works. In the crapshoot of life, you - turned up. You rose from the ground of your ancestors, their dust in your bones. Without accomplishing another thing, you are the complete fulfillment of all those who came before you. How can you doubt yourself?"So today, resolve not to waste anymore time being miserable. I know. It's hard. Realize that in every kernel of every moment, in every fraction of every second, there is a joyous experience ready to unfold in your life. In the end, it is all a matter of perspective. The Talmud teaches that we do not see things as they are, we see them as WE are.Open the door to this new day. Start again. Enjoy the delicacies you are offered! A couple of days I went to see the movie "Paris Can Wait," just to watch Diane Lane wander lazily through Provence, eating and drinking the most amazing things, lost in conversation, taking her time to arrive at her destination. And at the conclusion of the movie, I felt refreshed - as if I were the one traveling through France eating and drinking the finest it had to offer, without the jet lag!I leave you with this meme that popped up in my Facebook feed from a year ago. This is your assignment for the day:

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Who am I? I think of myself as a mystic and semi-contemplative first. I've had a rich and diverse life - as the daughter, granddaughter and niece to diplomats. Towards the end of my career teaching theology and spirituality for 25 years, I became both a Certified Yoga Teacher and Reiki practitioner and teacher in the Northern Virginia area. I have a doctoral degree in spirituality and education, and these areas remain a great passion of mine.